Is the frozen housing market actually protecting self-storage operations from a severe downturn?

I am your host, Thaddeus Campbell, and on this edition of Storage Unlocked, I am joined by Noah Starr, CEO of Tracked IQ (TractIQ), the market intelligence platform monitoring over 72,000 facilities nationwide.

Every quarter, the self-storage REITs release their numbers—and Noah joins me to cut through the corporate spin and examine what the underlying metrics mean for private owners, developers, and syndicators.

In this episode, I cover:

• The Length-of-Stay Metric: How customer retention increased by an average of 1.5 months year-over-year, keeping move-out churn low and preserving net operating income.

• The Mortgage Lock-In Dynamic: Why homeowners and renters stuck in sub-4% mortgages are staying put and relying on self-storage units longer, giving operators room to execute rate increase strategies.

• Extra Space's Margin Strength: Analyzing Extra Space's negative expense growth (-0.5%) and broad guidance lift across same-store pools.

• The $10.5B PSA / NSA Integration: What happens when Public Storage expands into tertiary markets, unlocks 14,000 offline units, and applies institutional pricing power to 1,100 acquired properties.

• Pipeline Intelligence: How tracking validated municipal permits prevents developers from overbuilding into saturated submarkets.

Tune in for an unfiltered, data-driven look at where self-storage fundamentals stand today.

Connect with Thaddeus Campbell (S3 Partners): Email: [email protected] LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/itsthadcampbell/

Connect with Noah Starr (TractIQ) Email: [email protected] LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/noah-starr/ Join the TractIQ webinar here: https://tractiq.com/self-storage-webinar/ Brought to you by our title sponsor, PB Brown General Contractors: https://pbbrown.com/

In this episode of Storage Unlocked, I am joined by Maurice Pogoda, founder and president of National Storage. Starting in 1987 with a map and a Rolodex, Maurice has built a 70+ facility Midwestern footprint that has stood the test of every major economic cycle over the last four decades.

In this episode, I cover:

• The Cycle Playbook: Why post-COVID peaks were an anomaly and how a conservative "tortoise" approach consistently outlasts speculative boom-and-bust developers.

• The Supply Dilemma: Maurice reflects on refusing to build at 2 sq ft per capita in the '90s versus managing through today's 7+ sq ft national average.

• The Deconstruction of PSA/NSA: What Public Storage's acquisition of National Storage Affiliates reveals about brand consistency, operational economies of scale, and tertiary market validation.

• The Mid-Tier Tech Filter: How National Storage integrates AI chatbots and revenue management tools without getting lost in vendor hype or losing the essential human, local touch.

• Disciplined Capital: Why underwriting to realistic 7% prefs protects your equity, while double-digit recapitalization promises signal desperation.

Tune in for an unfiltered, four-decade masterclass on disciplined real estate operations and sustainable portfolio growth! Connect with Thaddeus Campbell (S3 Partners): Email: [email protected]LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/itsthadcampbell/

Connect with Maurice Pogoda (National Storage Management):

Email: [email protected]

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maurice-pogoda-7ba4326/

Our Title Sponsor:

PB Brown General Contractors: The trusted GC for your multi-million-dollar storage and small-bay flex legacy developments from Manhattan to Miami. Visit pbbrown.com.

Welcome back to Storage Unlocked! I am your host, Thaddeus Campbell, and in this episode, I am joined by Zach Sette, co-founder and CEO of Outbidd.

Drawing from a lifetime in commercial construction and development, Zach shares a unique multi-asset perspective on the macro forces reshaping commercial real estate. We unpack the looming $900+ billion debt refinancing wall hitting the market in the second half of 2026, evaluate why rising construction costs are driving developers away from ground-up builds toward acquisitions, and explore how AI software is bringing total transparency to owner project management.

• The Refinancing Wall: Navigating balloon payments as 2021–2022 loans locked in at 4% face refinancing at 6%+.

• Build vs. Buy: Why 25% higher construction costs make asset acquisition more attractive than new builds.

• CRE Sector Heat Check: Why small bay flex and data centers are thriving while office conversions and localized multifamily struggle.

• Outbidd AI Technology: How Zach and his team built an AI-powered owner's rep tool to digitize RFPs and level contractor bids side-by-side.

Connect with Thaddeus Campbell (S3 Partners):

Email: [email protected]

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/itsthadcampbell/ Connect with Zach Sette (Outbidd):

Email: [email protected]

Website: https://www.outbidd.com/

This Episode was brought to you by:

https://pbbrown.com/

What happens when you combine the leading 3PL business storage network with the premier 24/7 call center in self-storage?

I am your host, Thaddeus Campbell, and in this episode of Storage Unlocked, I am joined by Laura Holmes (CEO of Warehouse Anywhere) and Shannon Charbonneau (VP of XPS Solutions) to pull back the curtain on their landmark acquisition.

Together, we explore how integrating 24/7 live call support with enterprise logistics technology creates an unbeatable end-to-end management solution for storage operators and corporate clients alike.

In this episode, I cover:

• The 24/7 Scale Upgrade: Why expanding call center operations to 168 hours a week directly addresses the urgent needs of corporate field technicians visiting units at 2:00 AM.

• The Economics of Business Storage: Why commercial tenants provide higher lifetime value, longer average stays (2+ years), and zero seasonal churn compared to traditional residential renters.

• Spotting Market Gaps: Laura shares the strategic vision behind acquiring Warehouse Anywhere out of Life Storage and building a high-growth platform that traditional REITs overlooked.

• Preserving Human Connection: Shannon explains why live, high-empathy call answering remains essential for resolving complex tenant issues alongside modern tech stacks.

• Cultural Integration: How two customer-first organizations successfully aligned their teams within 30 days of closing the deal.

Tune in to discover how this powerful acquisition is reshaping tenant support and driving new revenue streams for storage operators! Connect with Me

• LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/itsthadcampbell

Our Sponsor:

• PB Brown General Contractors: Our Title Sponsor and premier commercial builders specializing in multi-million dollar storage and small-bay flex developments. Get them involved early at pbbrown.com.

In this episode of Storage Unlocked, I am joined by two top-tier operators attacking small-bay from opposite sides of the country: Shane Decker (President of Decker Capital) and Andrew Dunn (Co-Founder of VAC Development, "The Value Add Cowboys").

Together, we break down the operational, development, and capital market realities of one of commercial real estate's most talked-about asset classes.

In this episode, we cover:

• The Buyer Profile & Spec Differences: The contrast between acquiring existing 1,000–10,000 sq ft tradesman bays versus building 15,000–20,000 sq ft modern logistics spaces with heavy power and dock loading.

• The 1-to-2-Year Sourcing Pipeline: Why finding mismanaged, off-market mom-and-pop assets through direct relationships beats fighting 15 to 25 bidders on marketed deals.

• Operational Value-Add Mechanics: How converting modified gross leases to Triple Net (NNN), pushing 6% annual rent bumps, and right-sizing office footprints yielded a $20M value pop on an Orlando asset in 30 months.

• Ground-Up Execution: Andrew shares how VAC locks in Guaranteed Maximum Price (GMP) construction contracts to build in 10 to 12 months, achieving up to 40% pre-leasing prior to Certificate of Occupancy.

• Tenant Velocity: Why 1,000 to 3,000 sq ft units see the highest demand velocity as small business owners transition out of residential garages and self-storage units.

Tune in to discover how to navigate cap rate compression, structure NNN leases for local contractors, and execute disciplined underwriting in today's small bay landscape. Connect with Thaddeus Campbell (S3 Partners):

Email: [email protected]

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/itsthadcampbell/ Connect with Shane Decker (Decker Capital):

Email: [email protected]

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shane-decker-255b6988/ Connect with Andrew Dunn (VAC Development):

Email: [email protected]

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewmdunn41/

This Episode was brought to you by:

https://pbbrown.com

Can an independent regional operator genuinely beat the monolithic REITs when their same-store revenue flatlines at a mere 0.1%?

In this episode of Storage Unlocked, I sit down with Andrew Jones, the Senior Vice President of Third Party at GoStore It, to lay out the definitive operational blueprint for surviving the institutional aggregation wave in July 2026. Andrew brings an elite pedigree straight from Yardi and Extra Space to explain how independent owners can easily escape the asphyxiation of corporate scale without being forced to sell out at a loss.

In this episode, I cover:

• The 8% Anomaly: How GoStore It managed to secure a massive 8% same-store growth rate in Q1 while the public REITs hit a total revenue standstill.

• Declaring War on Complacency: Andrew outlines his mission to destroy the "set it and forget it" standard of third-party management, shifting the narrative away from corporate acquisition funnels back to baseline family asset protection.

• The 6.7% Mortgage Barrier: Why the current 30-year fixed housing environment demands that operators break out of monolithic self-storage thinking and deploy holistic land layers, blending mini-storage with truck parking and small-bay flex industrial.

• The Human Capital Edge: Why building a highly motivated, nimble internal workforce, like GoStore It specialized corporate auction squad, outperforms billions of dollars in faceless corporate data algorithms.

• Ellie AI and Corporate Benchmarks: A raw look at Public Storage's newly unveiled automated voice metrics, resolving 74% of 60,000 inbound inquiries completely in the background.

Tune in to discover how to inject raw nimbleness, rapid execution, and authentic relationship-driven management back into your commercial real estate footprint.

Connect with Thaddeus Campbell (S3 Partners):

Email: [email protected]

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/itsthadcampbell/

PB Brown General Contractors: Our premier Title Sponsor and legacy builders for multimillion-dollar storage and small-bay flex developments. Get Guy Sacento and Hado Montoya involved early at https://pbbrown.com/

In this highly tactical episode of Storage Unlocked, I am sitting down with Kusiima Boswell, co-founder of Terrakotta, to uncover why the real alpha in July 2026 commercial real estate is about processing speed and data validation. We move beyond the basic chatbot surface layers to evaluate how independent operators use advanced Model Context Protocol (MCP) integrations to bypass expensive third-party list data entirely.

In this episode, I cover:

• The Architecture of Terrakotta: How Kusiima built an AI-driven data and cold outreach engine that scrapes pristine tenant footprints, owner cells, and structural data before feeding them into a souped-up phone-dialer asset loop.

• The 3-Minute Inbox Sweep: I outline how I personally deploy advanced Codex workflows to synthesize and break down over 820 unread emails without ever clicking through an absolute mountain of inbox noise.

• The Code Inversion Matrix: Why software development has completely inverted from writing code blocks to running deep automated iterations and forcing engineers to act as system critics.

• The Design Alpha Over Tech: Why the true winners of the next decade won't be monolithic tech platforms, but hyper-focused niche operators who design superior human experiences—like local audio-scraping app Granola.

• IPOs and Token Economics: A raw look at the massive wave of public-market AI lab IPOs arriving next week and how shifts in public capital will impact your localized pricing models.

Tune in to discover how to use deep commercial real estate domain structures to build an aggressive, high-margin pipeline that easily out-maneuvers legacy funds. Connect with Thaddeus Campbell (S3 Partners):

Email: [email protected]LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/itsthadcampbell/

Connect with Kusiima Boswell (Terrakotta AI): Website: https://www.terrakotta.ai/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kusiimaboswell/

Brought to you by our title sponsors, PB Brown General Contractors. https://pbbrown.com/

Is your facility a real estate business or a technology platform that happens to sell a storage product? I am your host, Thaddeus Campbell, and in this episode of Storage Unlocked, I am joined by Jessica Johnson (The Storage Group) to pull back the curtain on the rapid, hyper-localized evolution of operational AI in July 2026. Fresh off winning the inaugural ISS Best in Business Award for their Aiden Chat engine, Jessica shares hard, absolute metrics on how automated intelligence is insulating independent operations against rising labor, tax, and insurance costs.

In this episode, I cover:

• The $$1,440 Savings Matrix: A deep dive into concrete property data where AI handled 300 baseline inquiries, protecting 79 hours of staff time and boosting property margins.

• An Urgent Community Request: I share an important message regarding a humanitarian crisis hitting our producer, Erick Falck, whose family was heavily impacted by the devastating earthquakes in La Guaira, Venezuela.

• The Death of the IVR Maze: Why modern conversational phone and text interfaces are replacing old "press 1 for gate codes" mazes with seamless customer journeys.

• The Inbound Search Flip: How consumers shift away from Google's traditional search lines toward conversational models like ChatGPT changes exactly how you must structure your website metadata.

• Operational Pivots: Jessica opens up about her personal portfolio shift away from traditional mini-storage into boat/RV and flex-industrial developments.

Tune in to discover how to use automated workflows to protect your local footprint against corporate REIT consolidation. Support the Venezuelan earthquake relief fund in Erick's name by donating here: https://www.gofundme.com/f/emergency-relief-for-venezuela-earthquake-victims Connect with Thaddeus Campbell (S3 Partners):

Email: [email protected]LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/itsthadcampbell/

Connect with Jessica Johnson (The Storage Group) Email: [email protected] Website: https://www.storageinternetmarketing.com/

Our Title Sponsor:

• PB Brown General Contractors: The premier builders specializing in high-rise, legacy self-storage developments from Manhattan to Hawaii. Get them involved early at: https://pbbrown.com/

I am your host, Thaddeus Campbell, and in this blockbuster episode of Storage Unlocked, I sat down with Chris Taylor, the Chief AI Officer at 10 Federal, to deconstruct the massive technological consolidation rewriting the self-storage industry in 2026 . Chris brings an elite pedigree straight from the front lines of NVIDIA to reveal how true enterprise automation requires a foundational data layer rather than single-silo software products .

In this episode, I cover:

• The Leverage Multiplier: How a lean three-person acquisition team deploys 40 to 50 autonomous AI agents to parse topography, wetland restrictions, and market rate data completely in the background .

• Modular Building Blocks: Chris outlines the exact steps to transition your business from single-skill prompts to complex agentic workflows and full orchestration layers .

• The 8-Second Accounting Pivot: A practical breakdown of how 10 Federal eliminated 150 hours of monotonous corporate labor by reconstructing systemic data paths .

• The QR-Code Consumer: Why changing demographic markers means your incoming Millennial and Gen Z tenants want zero human friction during their move-in window .

• Upskilling Over Headcount Cuts: Why the elite operators of the next decade are focused on turning team members into high-level technology architects rather than reducing their workforce .

Tune in to discover how to weaponize data structures to outpace the largest institutional players in the market . Connect with Thaddeus Campbell (S3 Partners): Email: [email protected] LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/itsthadcampbell/ Connect with Chris Taylor (10 Federal): Email: [email protected] LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thechrisdtaylor/ This Episode was brought to you by: https://pbbrown.com/ https://s3.partners

In this episode of Storage Unlocked, I pull back the curtain on two decades of historical data to uncover why the microeconomics of storage are showing real signs of recovery despite intense macroeconomic turmoil . I evaluate the massive transition from the post-GFC development freeze to an era that added 1 billion square feet of self-storage to the US grid in just under eight years .

In this episode, I break down:

• The Post-GFC Parallel: Why our current construction deceleration mirrors the post-2008 landscape, and why the stabilization of Q1 2026 REIT metrics means the tide is finally turning .

• The Generational Safe Haven: Why a massive 16% usage rate among tech-native Millennials and Gen Z is successfully insulating our properties against flatlined housing turnover and a national birth rate slowdown .

• The Evolving Consumer: Why modern commercial facility designs have successfully redefined our core audience, causing female renters to officially outnumber men across the country .

• The Data Arms Race: Why relying on primary-market metrics alone creates dangerous blind spots, and how tracking 72,000 facilities nationwide completely shifts your underwriting accuracy .

Whether you are operating a single local facility or scaling a multi-state regional footprint, this historical and data-driven analysis will give you the exact baseline perspective you need to successfully execute your strategy in the back half of 2026 . Connect with me: Email: [email protected] LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/itsthadcampbell/ This episode was brought to you by: https://pbbrown.comFrom Manhattan to Miami, California to the Tropical Paradise of Hawaii, PB Brown is the GC to trust for your Multi-Million Dollar Storage Project.

https://tractiq.comGiving the industry the data it needs to make Responsible Investment a Reality.